The present invention relates to an automatic conveyor system, particularly of the reciprocating walking beam accumulating type.
Accumulating conveyors used in industry generally fall in two types. The first are generally pneumatic type accumulators making use of a switch at each station which controls actuators for moving carriers into their proper position for the accumulation. The second type are normally called mechanical, and do not make use of electrical or pneumatics in controlling the accumulation. This invention deals with an improved mechanical type accumulator. In the past mechanical accumulators have employed complicated designs for transferring information that a station is empty to the carrier behind that station so that they may move more pieces up to fill the empty station. The most common types of mechanical accumulator have made use of circuit bars for insuring the accumulation, such as is shown in the commonly owned Patent Application of Douglas Wiknich for a WALKING BEAM ACCUMULATING CONVEYOR, filed Sept. 24, 1979, Ser. No. 078,217. The need for numerous linkages in most mechanical accumulators make them expensive, although generally cheaper than pneumatics.
Also in the prior art attempts have been made to get away from the need of a circuit bar through use of purely tension means such as chains which connect the stations. An example of this type of art is shown in U.S. Pat. No. 3,747,741, yet this design requires relatively complicated controls to activate the carriers behind the empty station.